The operating system of Pocket3 will break simply and can't boot-up. This is the greatest weak point of Pocket3. This is because priority was given to the extendibility of an internal system, and the ease of upgrade. However, the personal digital assistant with which system disappearance takes place simply will not have only this in others.
And the greatest fault is that the means of system restoration by the user is not prepared as default. In the case of the user who does not know the restoration method, when a system disappears, he must go to the maintenance center of FUJITSU. But, a maintenance center may rest on Saturday and Sunday.
However, "not prepared as default" is "prepared as not default".
Then, this page has described how to restore a system by owner.
* This page has little information on the OASYS Pocket/OASYS Pocket2.
Please inquire of Webmaster in mail when you want to solve the System Volatilization of these models. However, Webmaster is very weak at English language.
The system of Pocket3 often volatilizes. If both the backup battery (lithium battery) and a dry cell are turned off, the system will disappear. Unfortunately, AC adapter is extracted while using it and the switch had been turned on, it may happen. Moreover, also in some software having hung-up, a system may disappear.
If a system volatilizes, the message "Please set a F-ROM card." coming out, and nothing will become possible.
By the following methods, restoring temporarily is sometimes possible.
However, it may be unable to restore by this method. Probably, it will be very well to give up and to have made it restore by other methods when it tried 2 or 3 times and could not restore.
The memory card which restores a system regularly is called "system card."
This corresponds to the "system disk" in an ordinary personal computer. A system can be restored by putting this card into the card slot by the side of A drive, and starting Pocket3.
In addition, though regrettable, the system of Pocket3 cannot be restored from a floppy disk.
A system card puts system data into the memory card formatted in DOS form. On the other hand, the memory card formatted in OASYS form is called "document card."
Moreover, the memory card into which system data is not put only by formatting in DOS form is called "data card."
There are the following methods of a system card in receiving.
One method is that it makes the system data into a memory card by the maintenance center of FUJITSU. A required size of the memory card is 128KB or more. However, since all the data that was contained in the card till then disappears, let's back up in advance.
If a system card is made normally, even if it is a mass card, it becomes system cards only. It becomes impossible to put in other information. Since this is wasteful, it should use as the card of the as minimum capacity as possible the card used as a system card.
However, since 128KB or 256KB of card is difficult to receive, you have to put a system into the card more than 512KB recently.
When only a mass card can be prepared, it is worthy of challenging the below-mentioned common system card.
However, the support center of Fujitsu has closed everything on March 31, 2005. After that, the support system is only a telephone receipt. If you call the toll-free service of the support, to collect the hardware that breaks down (The system disappearance is included) the carrying company visits your home(or, office etc.). In that case, it is difficult to ask for making the system card at the same time. There is no person who succeeds at present though there are some people who challenged.
Time required for having a system card made incidentally is several mere minutes, if a worker is an expert. And it is also 30 or less minutes by the unfamiliar worker because a business-use manual is referred to.
Another method is the data for system cards coming to hand, and making it personally. I have this data.
If it does as the Japanese explanation included in the data which came to hand, it can create easily. However, it is necessary to prepare OASYS, FM-R, or FM-TOWNS which can access a memory card. Naturally, Pocket3 is also contained in this. But, it is not helpful that Pocket3 cannot start by a system disappear.
While not preparing the system card in advance, supposing system disappearance takes place, the above-mentioned method of emergency restoration will be tried and a system card is made. If emergency restoration can be carried out now, a system card will be made immediately and it will be made to restore.
However, while not preparing the system card, system disappearance occurs.
But Pocket 3 which should make a system card is consciousness losing.
FM series computer? Such a minor thing does not have.
OASYS other than Pocket3? It is major on a Japanese word processor, but the DOS system for OASYS may be a minor from FM series computer.
There is a tool which is helpful when you has the notebook PC which can access a memory card. It calls SYSCARD.
This is a program for creating the system card of Pocket3 on other machine. In addition, since this software is DOS wide use, using by Pocket3 is also possible. However, the important data for system cards is not contained.
This tool and the data for the above-mentioned system cards is used, let the SRAM card of the capacity more than 128KB be a system card by various machines.
Please refer to an attached document to this tool about a detailed procedure.
Now, it is difficult to acquire this software. Please contact me if you need it. I can send it to you.
At the SYSCARD of mentioning above, it plays an important role so that the program named IMGCOPY used in that may make the system card. This is software of the DOS generic. But, because the technology of direct access to the drive is used, it doesn't operate on Windows.
However, there is an operating program that looks like IMGCOPY on Windows. For instance, it is a tool of "Read/Write FD" that Mr. K.Takata made.
It succeeded in making the system card in Win95 and Win2k when this was replaced with IMGCOPY.EXE.
The point that should be noted is quite the same as the case to use IMGCOPY.EXE.
That is, the data of HDD disappears if it makes a mistake in the drive letter and HDD is specified. Moreover, because the data that exists on the memory card disappears all when making it to the system card, it is necessary to back up beforehand.
If a system card is made, the domain about 128KByte will be secured among the whole SRAM card, and system information will be written in. If a system card is made ordinarily, no information will be written in the remaining domains. However, it cannot use for other uses. Therefore, it is wasteful to use a mass SRAM card as a system card.
In fact, there is a method of using the surplus domain as the data card of DOS. Thus, the made card is called "system common card."
However, in the software (FORMAT.COM and SYS.EXE) which Pocket3 builds in, this is unrealizable.
It is necessary to use freeware called IC memory card utility (ICMUTY).
Refer to this soft document for how to make.
Moreover, it is possible to also use the card of a 512-byte cluster as a common card.
* Cautions
The card formatted by DOS is made on a common card. However, with the document card formatted by OASYS, it cannot use in common.
The OASYS document can be preserved on the system common card or the data card of the DOS form. However, DOS cannot access the document card of the OASYS form.
There is a point which must be careful of.
Although I think that it is easy to happen with a common card, just as it puts a system card into the machine of Windows 95, then Windows 95 will rewrite on an ordinary data card. Such a thing cannot be found when it is a DOS machine.
Although not tried, I also regard Windows98 and later as it being the same as that of Windows95.
Moreover, although not tried too, it is thought that it does not rewrite in MacOS.
Incidentally, although OS/2 Warp4 had tried, it did not become a data card.
Is MS bad too?
However, there is the method of escaping this "data card-ization." If the above-mentioned IC memory card utility (ICMUTY) is used, it can return to the original system card. But I am usually applying with two memory cards so that it may not be confused in case of emergency.
One card is an object for the data exchange with a Windows95, and is usually put into A drive.
One more card is a system common card, and is usually put into B drive.
When the abnormalities in a system occur, a power supply is switched on after putting the card included in this B drive into A drive, a system can be restored.